Ritter issues labor order

Governor Bill Ritter circumvented the state house and issued an executive order to allow labor unions to represent state employees in safety, training and efficience negotiations. Is this a good move for the state of Colorado? (Read the story.)

It’s about time that we, as state employees, will be able to sit down with management and prove that we can make the services to the public more reliable and efficient. In return, we can make improvements to our own jobs.

Sam

So forget about pay raises for state employees, according to both sides, the union can’t help with that. According to Gov Bill “agricultural trespass” Ritter this is just about “partnership”. Yeah right, what it’s really about is MILLIONS and MILLIONS into union pockets and away from state workers and their families.
Sam

Daniel Miller

The fact Ritter circumvented the legislature says all that needs to be said. He had a quid pro quo agreement to satisfy with labor and couldn’t allow our elected representatives to sidetrack. This smells very bad.

Laura

I say “Right On” in support of the governor. It’s about time at least some employees in Colorado got the employment representation that they deserve! To the Denver Post/GOP – get over yourselves!!

Aaron Grady

Of course state employees should get union representation. The Post has unfortunately engaged in the worst kind of union smearing, with a poorly written front page editorial. This order, if examined, is the weakest endorsement of what every American should have – the right to organize and collectively bargain with their employer. My union makes my work safe, fair and tolerable. I wish everyone the same opportunity.

Tom

In my small corner of Colorado Dept. of Corrections, I witness a wealth of misspent dollars due to poor management resulting in very high employee turnover. Contributing to the high turnover is the lack of being able to move through our pay-range for over 5 years and falling behind in spendable income.

kelly

If you read Suday’s story–not the editorial–you’ll see that collective bargaining is not allowed. Membership and dues are not required. This order simply allows one branch of state employees the right to a safe, fair workplace.

The editorial was all about the evils of collective bargaining–yet if the editorial staff (who, to be fair, tell us that their opinion has nothing to do with what is reported in their paper) had read their paper, they would have seen that collective bargaining for wages, and permission to strike is not part of this deal.

Alma

The republican cloth rendering over this is crazy. Why not get workers and management together to discuss efficiencies in how the state’s services are delivered. This is just good practice and something most efficient businesses already do. This is much ado about nothing, trying to paint Ritter into a corner in which he doesn’t belong. If the Repubs keep crying wolf like this over nothing, who is going to listen? Alma

Bart

The Denver Post equates with “Republican cloth?” Alma is not dealing transparently with reality. Alma’s statement is a total obfuscation of the facts. Quality partnerships in government offices were never illegal. Ritter belongs in the corner for engineering a Democratic Party take – over of all government in Colorado – or so the approx. two – thirds of us who are independent or Rebublican ought to protest.

POed Lib

I just love it. When a modest little reform getting state employees a little say in their job, the rightwingnut wackjob that runs this paper goes BALLISTIC. Unions are one of the most important forces helping normal Americans around today. Thank goodness Ritter is getting Colorado up to speed. Normal workers need some power in their workplace, as well as rightwingnut billionaires who run newspapers.

I thought that the “liberal media” was “liberal”. Looks like the “liberal media” is about as liberal as Adolph Hitler to me.

Kate Hart, Jefferson County

It was courageous for Governor Bill Ritter to put this into an executive order. Increasing communication between workers and state employers is a positive thing. To view this as a pro-union anti-business move is untrue. This order creates a win-win for employees to provide better services for the other taxpayers of Colorado. It will assist in creating a more cooperative environment for serving Coloradoans.

bk

It was not courageous for Governor Bill Ritter to do this by executive order — it was cowardly. A major change like this should come up through legislation, with ample opportunity for legislative hearings and a straight-up vote.

This was a political payoff of the dirtiest kind.

I’m sorry that I believed his malarkey and voted for him. That’s a mistake I won’t make again.

DenverDan

Apparently Ritter was so “proud” of his actions that he tried to pull it off without anyone noticing.

Why did he need to bury it at 4pm on Friday afternoon?

Why didn’t he allow anyone to provide input?

Why didn’t he trust the legislature to discuss it?

Why didn’t he hold an immediate press conference announcing it?

Simple. He was ashamed of it and was hoping to slide one past voters. Slippery Bill got caught.

Roy

Since the Governor’s order doesn’t allow for the right to strike, it’s essentially meaningless.

Much more telling was the Denver Post’s childish and unprofessional editorial. How, exactly, is the mainstream media different from blogs?

I can only imagine how embarrassed Post employees are right now.

elizabeth

Was Ritter’s executive order the payback to the union-run Democrat party to bring the Democrat’s National Convention to Colorado? Or was it just the price of letting the special interest group “help” him get elected?

Elizabeth

W

So Tax Ritter finally paid back the Unions. He had to sneak an executive order in late Friday and not let his Democrap legislature even debate the issue. This will increase the taxpayer’s bill. But the Democraps don’t care because they have a lot of special interests to pay back. In a little over three years it will be a pleasure to see Tax’s successor undo all his executive orders. Reduce the “carbon footprint” in Colorado. Vote Tax Ritter out of office!

Paul

Nice job on the editorial. I can’t believe the Gov. would be foolish enought to make a statement to the effect that unions will make state employees more effective and efficient. I have over 34 years of public service and have worked with unions over during almost all that time. A Union would never make anything more effective or efficient.